[UPDATED with Teen Found, Jailed:] Matt Hoff is Off His Meds and Missing After Being Kicked From OC Jail

UPDATE, FEB. 22, 8:03 A.M.: Since Matt Hoff's disappearance was publicized in the media and on social networking sites, the bipolar 18-year-old was reported spotted in Brea, Lake Forest and Laguna Beach.

However, the Ladera Ranch man was found Tuesday evening in Santa Ana, not too far from the Orange County Jail that kicked him loose around 4 a.m. Feb. 7, his last-known whereabouts. Hoff was put back behind bars.

Santa Ana Police say he was jailed after being arrested near Edinger and Stanard avenues on suspicion of possession of narcotics around 7:40 p.m. Tuesday.

His family is delighted the teen is safe, and they hope a judge's recent recommendation will help keep it that way for the mentally ill young man. The judge found Hoff should be placed under a mental health conservatorship that would allow his parents the legally get hospitalization for him whenever he needs it, the Orange County Register reports.

UPDATE, FEB. 21, 9:44 P.M.: Matt has been found, but promptly put in jail by Santa Ana police for possession of narcotics. Stay tuned for updates as we get them.

ORIGINAL POST, FEB. 21, 10:44 A.M.: The parents of Mitrice Richardson screamed holy hell and sued Los Angeles County after the bipolar 24-year-old's bones were found in 2010 near a remote sheriff station that had released the former Cal State Fullerton student from lock-up the year before--after midnight, with no money, phone or ride home. The parents of Matt Hoff pray there will not be a similar outcome for the mentally ill Ladera Ranch 18-year-old, who was released from the Central Jail in Santa Ana at 4 a.m. Feb. 7 and has not been seen since.

Hoff's parents, Gary and Jennifer Hoff, set up a Facebook page they hope will generate tips that will lead to their boy, who is likely roaming the streets alone. You can also call them at 714.759.4357 or the Orange County Department of Behavioral Health at 714.517.6353. Facebook includes this most-recent photo of Matthew:

Facebook

Matt HoffMatt was last seen at 4am in Santa Ana CA. His parents were not notified of his release untill 12 hours later.

Matt normally calls home multipal times daily. We are very worried.Please anyone who can help get this information about Matt out there...news, radio, librarys, hospitals, gas stations.

We love you Matt. Please call us.February 14 at 1:41pm

Matt HoffMatthew We Miss You Please Call HomeOur 18 year old son has s serious mental illness. His brain actually tricks him into thinking he is not sick. His illness has gotten rapidly worse since he turned 18 and was transitioned from an out of state treatment residential facility May 2011 into the care of Orange County Mental Health TAY Services. We need you help to locate him so his father and I can try to reason with, tell him how much he is loved by his family, tell him that his little brothers ask for him every night. We need an opportunity to just talk with him and let him know we wre here to help in any way we canFebruary 14 at 3:11am

Hoff has exhibited erratic behavior since he was 5, and he was treated with anti-psychotic medications, kept at group homes and received other services for the mentally ill through adolescence. Previously, when he had run-ins with the law, he could receive the treatment he needs. But once Hoff turned 18, he was "aged out" of treatment programs, which are only available to adults who pose dangers to others.

He recently earned a 60-day jail stay for theft, and sheriff's officials denied his parent's attempts to get him his meds while behind bars. His parents now fear he has sunk into full-blown psychosis. His parents are willing to pay for treatment in a private facility, but often while in his psychotic state Hoff does not trust them, and they cannot commit him against his will.

Matt Coker has been engaging, enraging and entertaining readers of newspapers, magazines and websites for decades. He spent the first 13 years of his career in journalism at daily newspapers before "graduating" to OC Weekly in 1995 as the paper's first calendar editor. He has contributed as a freelance editor and writer to several publications and been the subject of or featured in several reports online, in print and on the radio and television. One of countless times he returned to his Costa Mesa, CA, home with a bounty of awards from a journalism competition, his wife told him to take out the trash.